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Chicago police no longer responding to all 911 calls

Chicago police no longer responding to all 911 calls

To free up more officers to deal with the
most serious crimes, 911 dispatchers will no longer send officers to
attend calls deemed less pressing.

Chicago police are no longer responding
in person to 911 calls reporting vehicle theft, garage burglary or
simple assault in a change aimed at freeing up officers to deal with
more serious crimes.

According to a report in the Chicago Sun-Times,
the change came into effect on Sunday and also covers crime where the
victim is "safe, secure and not in need of medical attention" and the
offender is "not on the scene and not expected to return immediately."

Chicago
authorities are hoping the change frees up more officers to attend to
the most serious crimes, such as serious assaults and murders.

Instead
of sending officers, 911 dispatchers have been told to transfer the
calls to the Chicago Police Department’s Alternate Response Section,
which is staffed by officers on light duty.

In 2012, the Alternate
Response Section dealt with 74,000 reports. Victims of crime had the
choice of filing a report over the phone or requesting that an officer
attend in person when one was available. That number of reports is
expected to double, but the choice of asking for an officer to attend
will no longer be available.

The change is expected to free up the equivalent of 44 officers a day.

Dispatchers
have reportedly been told to transfer calls if "the offender is gone,
not expected to 'return immediately' and an officer is not needed for a
prompt investigation; an officer on the scene would 'not result in an
immediate arrest'; and the victim is safe, secure and not in need of
medical attention."

The Sun-Times goes on to quote Chicago Deputy
Chief-of-Patrol Steve Georgas, who said police forces throughout the
United States are looking for ways to become more efficient.

"This
is just a little piece that we think is going to help us in keeping
cops up and free for patrol work. I don’t think we're looking for huge
gains. It's probably only going to equate to 40 to 45 officers a watch,"
he said.

Georgas added that he did not think the change will be difficult for residents to get used to.

"It's
a traumatic thing being the victim of a crime. This will be a little
more convenient for them as well," he said. "They're still getting
police service from a sworn police officer. But it's over the phone, and
it's only in certain situations. Those officers are trained in what to
ask. If certain things come up, they'll be able to transfer that back
over to dispatch, and we'll immediately send an officer out."

However, some Chicago aldermen suggested the changes will prove difficult to accept for crime victims.

"I
can understand if it's [to report] somebody spray-painted my trash can.
But people want to see an officer when it gets up to a certain level of
crime. They're setting the bar pretty high for police not to respond,"
said Alderman Scott Waguespack.

"When you're talking about
someone's garage being broken into and you've had three or four
neighbors with the same thing, people have an expectation of having an
officer on location to assess the situation," he said. "If no officer
shows up, they're going to assume it's going to keep happening. They'll
feel this is scaling back even more. There'll be a lot of people angry."

A stolen vehicle, burglary, and assault are serious crimes. Unless an officer comes out to assess the situation, the severity level cannot be determined properly. This is a bad, bad move, Chicago. Very bad.

I was assaulted right outside my house in October of 2011. I did not call the police. I went to the station to report it. I didn't call because the asshole ran away after I put a dent in his head with my elbow. The off icier at the station took my statement, filed the report, then a very nice female detective came to see me a few days later.

If the asshole is no longer around, there is no point in calling the police. Go to the station and report it.

Quoting ArianEponae:

They said if the person was no longer present ok the case of assault. If they're still there, an officer will come, but if they've left they won't. So, assault being on the list is fine by me. They can early take the information over the phone. If the criminal returns, they've already got the info and can respond, but if they don't return no harm done by the phone interview...plus, the police already know where the criminal isn't and who to watch for...

Quoting survivorinohio:

I think simple assauly can turn felonious in one swing. Assault should not be on the list.

I remember many years ago when we lived in Massachusetts that there were areas in Boston that the police wouldn't even go in there. Many times they would just wait for things to calm down before going in. Honestly, I didn't blame them.

Quoting yourspecialkid:

So, if I came home and found the door kicked in...indicating a burglary....I am just going to have to make a report over the phone.....what if the burglar is still in there? I am supposed to search the house myself?

I think there are so gray areas that I hope they have addressed...but aren't in the article.

Gradations- the scenario that you describe vs coming home to find your garage door ajar and your lawn mower missing are quite different.

Common sense and logic must still be engaged.

Quoting yourspecialkid:

So, if I came home and found the door kicked in...indicating a burglary....I am just going to have to make a report over the phone.....what if the burglar is still in there? I am supposed to search the house myself?

I think there are so gray areas that I hope they have addressed...but aren't in the article.

My dad's car has been stolen a number of times. We don't bother to call the police. We go to the station and report it. There is no need to call and expect an officer to come out when we can go to the station and file the report. The police have better things to do. I was assaulted in October of 2011. I didn't call the police because the fuck face ran off after I dented his head with my elbow. I went to the station to report it.

Our home has never been broken into. Probably because we have a giant black dog.

If the crime has already been done and the asshole is not around, there is no need to call the police and expect them to show up. We must go to the station to report this stuff after the fact.

Quoting SuperJo:A stolen vehicle, burglary, and assault are serious crimes. Unless an officer comes out to assess the situation, the severity level cannot be determined properly. This is a bad, bad move, Chicago. Very bad.

What happened to you might not be what happened to someone else. Police are supposed to protect and serve, not pick and choose. I think this is a bad move as Chicago is a notoriously dangerous city a lot of times.

Quoting mehamil1:

My dad's car has been stolen a number of times. We don't bother to call the police. We go to the station and report it. There is no need to call and expect an officer to come out when we can go to the station and file the report. The police have better things to do. I was assaulted in October of 2011. I didn't call the police because the fuck face ran off after I dented his head with my elbow. I went to the station to report it.

Our home has never been broken into. Probably because we have a giant black dog.

If the crime has already been done and the asshole is not around, there is no need to call the police and expect them to show up. We must go to the station to report this stuff after the fact.

Quoting SuperJo:A stolen vehicle, burglary, and assault are serious crimes. Unless an officer comes out to assess the situation, the severity level cannot be determined properly. This is a bad, bad move, Chicago. Very bad.

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